Aquarium Plants that do Not Need Substrate

When we decide to introduce natural plants to our aquarium there is a need to dedicate some time, no matter how short it may be, we need to inform ourselves about everything our aquarium needs so that our plants and fish or aquatic animals can thrive as they should.

Whether substrate or gravel, lighting, easy or difficult aquarium plants, low-tech or high-tech aquariums… We can get dizzy when faced with so much information. You must be calm, everything comes in its time and, in the wonderful world of aquariums, haste and impatience will always lead to great disappointments.

Therefore, in this post, we are going to see the most recommended aquarium plants that do not need substrate for our planted aquarium. It is not that they are easier or more difficult to maintain, but that most require less material, so to speak, and less knowledge.

Read Also: What Is a Biotope Aquarium? Types & Classification

Therefore, they represent both economic and time savings and, while we study how they prosper and new questions arise, then this allows us to continue advancing and studying.

What do we mean by plants that do not require substrate?

Before delving into and recommending a series of plants, we want to clarify what is meant by a plant that does not need a substrate.

Generally, when we talk about plants and refer to the word “substrate”, we can refer to two totally different aspects:

1. Plants that do not require a nutritious substrate and will thrive perfectly in any inert gravel.
2. Plants that are not planted, pardon the redundancy but rather take root in different decorative elements.

In this way, it is logical that when we refer to aquarium plants that do not need substrate, we make this differentiation as we do not want to get you involved in any misinformation.

Aquarium plants that do not need NUTRITIOUS substrate

As we said, we start with those plants that do not require a nutritious substrate and in order not to show you a long list of varieties, we are going to refer to plant genera and families. Although at first glance the possibilities may seem few, we tell you that each genre that we will present below has an endless number of different varieties.

Remember that we have previously made a differentiation, so if you have arrived directly here and you do not see any plant that you expected, we recommend you go a little higher.

• Vallisneria

With ribbon leaves and various varieties with different leaf lengths and shapes, they are ideal for creating background curtains. Without a doubt, an excellent option if you are looking for a tall plant that covers the bottom of the aquarium or, also, that you want to place in the corners to give it a natural appearance. Furthermore, they reproduce very quickly through spurs, so in a very short time you will have a beautiful green curtain.

As we say, there are many varieties and they are distinguished mainly by the size and shape of the leaf. The most common varieties are Spinulosa, Gigantea, Nana, Spiralis, Americana, Erecta, Rubra, and Vallinesria sp.

• Cryptocorines

This genre is possibly one of our favorites and they look perfect. The great possibilities in terms of varieties mean that one or the other always fits perfectly in the space you want to plant. That is when you have an aquarium planted to the max, and you are not able to resist adding more plants… put a crypto in your life! (and no, we are not referring to the famous currency)

There are cryptocorines of many shapes and different sizes and colors so you can choose from a wide variety of plants.

• Echinodorus

The Echinodorus or the Amazonian Sword is another genus of plants that does not need a nutritious substrate to grow and develop. An inert gravel will be enough for it to occupy a considerable part of our aquarium with its corpulent leaves. In the same way as the previous ones, we also find ourselves faced with a wide range of possibilities that differ by the type and size of the leaves, as well as their color.

• Hygrophilas

We come to a stem plant and as you have seen, until now we had only talked about rosette plants. Stem plants require greater strength and therefore nutrients for their correct development. However, we still have several possibilities to choose from.

Hygrophilas are plants that are characterized by rapid growth and forming beautiful clumps that will help you create different compositions along with the rest of the plant varieties you choose. Unfortunately, not all Hygrophilas are suitable for an aquarium without a nutrient substrate and we only recommend the following varieties:

• Hygrophila Polisperma
• Hygrophila Corymbosa
• Hygrophilus Difformis

Since we have already presented you the main types of plants that we consider most relevant and the rest of the options are specific varieties, below we present a list of plants that you can also maintain without major problems:

• Ambulia or Limnophila Sessiliflora

The ambulance is a classic. It stands out for its rapid growth and, largely due to this, it has established itself as a large consumer of nitrates. It is ideal for community aquariums to provide shelter and food for fry as it is also known for providing infusoria (microorganisms that serve as food for small fish).

Given its rapid growth, you will have to prune practically every week and the best of all is that you can replant as much as you want in your aquarium to get a nice ambulia bed. We have always kept it in aquariums with inert gravel and with about 0.3-0.5 watts/liters in terms of lighting and it has been great for us. It is also a very good option as a floating plant for breeding and shrimp aquariums as it will keep nitrates at bay.

• Sagittaria Subulata

This plant is perfect for upholstering the front areas of low-tech or low-requirement aquariums. The fact that it does not require a nutritious substrate, nor has high demands in terms of lighting and fertilization, makes it the ideal plant if you want a covered aquarium but do not have the knowledge or the time necessary to maintain an aquarium that involves constant and methodical routine.

• Ceratophyllum Demersum

Finally, we present another aquarium classic. You can place it either planted or floating and it also stands out for being a great consumer of nitrates, making it another very good option for breeding aquariums, shrimp aquariums, and ultimately any aquarium whose inhabitants are very sensitive to nitrogenous compounds.

Aquarium plants to root in logs and stones

Are you seeing the difference? On the one hand, we have those plants that require a “soil” in which to root and on the other, we find those that should never be planted in the substrate (regardless of whether it is nutritious, clayey, inert, etc.)

All the plants that we are presenting to you are very easy to care for and will allow you to gradually enter the world of the planted aquarium but… wait, there are still the easiest ones! And the plants that we are going to see in this section do not require large amounts of light, or fertilizer, and as we said, not even substrate.

You just have to tie or glue them to the trunk or stone that you like the most and “play” with the decoration until you find the combination that you like the most.

It is very important that you never bury these plants in the substrate or else the rhizome will rot and the plant will die. That is, never do what you can see in the image below!

Anubias

Anubias are a large and incredible genus of plants that, if you decide on them, will accompany you a long way. In our case, we have Anubias who have been with us for more than 10 years! As we said before, they are made up of a rhizome from which the leaves gradually grow, since the growth of these plants stands out for its slowness.

You can find from small varieties such as Anubia Petite, to varieties that reach up to 60 centimeters in height such as Gigantea, although the latter will depend on the state in which it grows and the age of the plant. Currently, we can even find varieties with modifications in their coloration with the Anubia Pinto.

In this way, the most common varieties found in stores are: Anubia Nana, Barteri, Congensis, Weightlifting, Gracilis and Azfelli, among others.

Aquatic ferns

Ferns are also another family of plants that we can root as decorative elements and that are essential in an aquarium due to their great ease in making plant formations. Among ferns for aquariums we mainly find two genera of plants, Microsorum and Ceratopteris, although on this occasion we will focus on the first since, in our opinion, they are more recommended for rooting in trunks and stones and are more beautiful.

Thus, the Microsorum, like the plants presented in the previous point, is also a rhizome plant that we can tie or glue very easily and will allow us to do without substrate. These plants are tough, very resistant and slow-growing.

Commercially speaking, the most common are Microsoum Pteropus (or java), Windelov and Trident. The latter, Microsorum Trident, is highly appreciated in aquascaping for the great opportunities it offers to create compact areas.

Mosses

In the world of aquariums, we are also lucky to have a large number of varieties of moss with different shapes and types of growth. They are perfect for covering branches and rocks and giving the aquarium a great naturalness. On all occasions, there are more resistant varieties and others that are more delicate that should only be kept in high-performance aquariums (large amount of light, fertilizer routine and co2).

Due to its popularity, Java, Christmas, Flame, Erecto or Weeping moss stands out. New varieties are continually arriving that stand out for their rarity, but the vast majority require planted aquariums with exhaustive control and accelerated growth. An example would be all the varieties belonging to the Fissidens genus, since as a general rule, they require a greater amount of light and fertilization routine compared to those mentioned in the first lines.

Bucephalandras

We arrive at the jewel in the crown! Bucephalandras have been causing a stir among hobbyists in recent years and they are one of the most exotic plants that we can find for our aquariums. With colors ranging from green to purple, through a multitude of red and blue tones, we can find a wide variety of Buces with different leaf shapes and sizes.

They are incredible. They are one of those plants that you could spend hours in front of, admiring their amazing shine and reflections. In the same way as the previous ones, you should root them in trunks and stones, although in this case we recommend that you only opt for rocks that have good porosity.

If you want to enjoy the best version of a Bucephalandra, you will have to carry out very methodical subscriber control because, even if they are slow growing, they should never lack phosphates to surprise us with their best coloration. In addition, an extra contribution of carbon, CO2, will help us accelerate the growth of the plant and the result will speak for itself.

We hope that all the possibilities that we have presented to you help you have the aquarium you have always wanted or that they help you gradually introduce yourself to the world of aquatic plants. And, above all, it has helped you learn about the main plants that do not need substrate so that you can start setting up your planted aquarium in the simplest way.

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